Spider-Man 4 Cancelled! [Updated]

Well, I kind of saw this coming. Spider-Man 4 with its issues over villains, Sony vs. Raimi disputes and delays is now confirmed dead.

Many of our readers agreed with what I said in our last post on the confirmed delay of Spider-Man 4 in that perhaps Raimi and Sony should simply part ways and they can take the franchise in another direction or start from scratch.

Now it is confirmed from Nikki Finke and Mike Fleming at Deadline Hollywood that the cast and director have pulled out entirely and Sony will instead go the route of the reboot with Jamie Vanderbilt’s script.

This was bound to happen after the mess of Spider-Man 3 and I’m a little surprised it took this long for Raimi and Sony to part ways considering he was seemingly promised creative control of this fourth installment after being somewhat of a puppet for the studio the last go in terms of villain selections.

According to Finke and Fleming’s sources, Raimi told Sony that he cannot make their scheduled release date and in response, the heads of Sony Pictures and Columbia Pictures were not fond of the idea of replacing the director or waiting, so they will instead do what many fans want and reboot the franchise all together.

When Marvel Studios moved Thor into Spider-Man 4′s key release date at the opening weekend of summer 2011, we knew Spider-Man 4 was officially on the move but it’s a little surprising to see that turn into a full blown cleansing of the slate so to speak.

Does this news break your heart or make you cry for joy? What do you want to see from the reboot?

[Update 1: Sony Pictures Tweeted that the reboot will see Peter Parker back in High School and that the film will come in 2012 as opposed to Spider-Man 4′s May 2011 planned release date]

[Update 2: Sony put put their official press release on the matter - See below]

Culver City, CA (January 11, 2010) — Peter Parker is going back to high school when the next Spider-Man hits theaters in the summer of 2012. Columbia Pictures and Marvel Studios announced today they are moving forward with a film based on a script by James Vanderbilt that focuses on a teenager grappling with both contemporary human problems and amazing super-human crises.

The new chapter in the Spider-Man franchise produced by Columbia, Marvel Studios and Avi Arad and Laura Ziskin, will have a new cast and filmmaking team. Spider-Man 4 was to have been released in 2011, but had not yet gone into production.

“A decade ago we set out on this journey with Sam Raimi and Tobey Maguire and together we made three Spider-Man films that set a new bar for the genre. When we began, no one ever imagined that we would make history at the box-office and now we have a rare opportunity to make history once again with this franchise. Peter Parker as an ordinary young adult grappling with extraordinary powers has always been the foundation that has made this character so timeless and compelling for generations of fans. We’re very excited about the creative possibilities that come from returning to Peter’s roots and we look forward to working once again with Marvel Studios, Avi Arad and Laura Ziskin on this new beginning,” said Amy Pascal, co-chairman of Sony Pictures Entertainment.

“Working on the Spider-Man movies was the experience of a lifetime for me. While we were looking forward to doing a fourth one together, the studio and Marvel have a unique opportunity to take the franchise in a new direction, and I know they will do a terrific job,” said Sam Raimi.

“We have had a once-in-a-lifetime collaboration and friendship with Sam and Tobey and they have given us their best for the better part of the last decade.This is a bittersweet moment for us because while it is hard to imagine Spider-Man in anyone else’s hands, I know that this was a day that was inevitable,” said Matt Tolmach, president of Columbia Pictures, who has served as the studio’s chief production executive since the beginning of the franchise. “Now everything begins anew, and that’s got us all tremendously excited about what comes next. Under the continuing supervision of Avi and Laura, we have a clear vision for the future of Spider-Man and can’t wait to share this exciting new direction with audiences in 2012.”

“Spider-Man will always be an important franchise for Sony Pictures and a fresh start like this is a responsibility that we all take very seriously,” said Michael Lynton, Chairman and CEO of Sony Pictures. “We have always believed that story comes first and story guides the direction of these films and as we move onto the next chapter, we will stay true to that principle and will do so with the highest respect for the source material and the fans and moviegoers who deserve nothing but the best when it comes to bringing these stories and characters to life on the big screen.”

The studio will have more news about Spider-Man in 2012 in the coming weeks as it prepares for production of the film.

But WHY is it a bad idea? So what if you take Peter back to high school? Dont you think there was a lot missing between high school and “adult” Peter? There were headlines so he was doing stuff before Goblin showed up.

I cant see why people cany accept it… I mean I could see if it would be Peter Porker… but its not. It is still Spiderman. Spiderman is Spiderman. It is not Tobey is Spiderman.

“A reboot now would basically trash the storyline laid out in the 3 Spidey films by Sam Raimi,” What story line? This story line is the same story line that has been told for many years in print and cartoons.

“The Spider-Man franchise is just 8 years old,” the Spiderman franchise has been around since 1962 in print, cartoons and live action. There has been very little that has been changed about Spiderman. Nothing that really hasnt been changed back.

Spiderman is a character that relates to people. It relates to an idea. He has trials and tribulations in his real life.

I will ask again as I asked responding to GK.. What do you mean? Can you be more specific?

The Spiderman I knew and know does not have webs spewing out his body (well he did but they changed that back), yet it worked. That was a change people were livid over….

Doesn't really matter they are going ahead with it. I will base my opinion on what it is when it is finished. It is a Spiderman movie. Nothing more nothing less.

The sad part about all of this is that the whole reason the reboot is taking place is because of Spiderman 3. The first two films were great, especially the second one. It definately is too soon for a reboot and dont think that they will be able to top the first two films. If Raimi had such an issue with the villain selection they shoudl have just cut him out and kept the same cast and story going with another director. Yes Tobey likes working with Raimi but throw in a few more zeros into his paycheck and he will be on board for sure.

What is going on with all this “reboot” crap. Sony and Fox keep messing up franchises and all their answers are “reboot” them. This “reboot” thing is getting out of hand. It's understandable to reboot something that's 20 years old or older but Sony and Fox are “rebooting” practically everything or at least trying too. It was necessary to “reboot” or “re-imagine” “The Hulk”,because Marvel got him back and where going to do “their” character right and put him in “The Avengers”. I tell you what somebody needs to do,is “reboot” Fox and Sony's asses or give them “the-boot”.

I will ask you as Ive asked the others… Why do you have an issue with a “reboot”?

How was the Hulk “rebooted”? They just got different actors…. wasn't the “storyline” still the same? Guy turns into the Hulk Government chases him… Are you saying Sam Elliot couldnt have sat at a bar at the end of the first Hulk and have RDJ come up to him asking if he had a problem?

Marvel have made some complete balls-ups (Brand New Day anyone?) with their Spiderman character. The character does get rebooted periodically with different writers and artists who have their own take on the franchise. From that perspective there's nothing wrong with reimaging the Spiderman.

However my gut feeling is that this isn't the way to go. Better to introduce the Ultimate universe character and have a parallel universe take on Peter Parker. Unfortunately because of the different studios involved I don't think they could tie him into the Avengers movie coming out.

Honestly, the franchise that needs to be rebooted is the X-men. I thought spidey 1 and 2 were not bad. S2 was better out of the three, but I don't think the franchise needed to be rebooted. Frankly, I'm tired of the talk of some who think that a change in the cast, etc. would cause fans to not come out and see it. i mean, it's spiderman, one of our famous and beloved superheroes. As long as the script/plot makes sense and is good, I'm all for it. However, I repeat, I did not think that the spidey franchise needed to be rebooted. But someone, please reboot X-men, and then X-men Origins: Wolverine. PLEASE!

Spiderman (reboot) will not be like Spiderman (Raimi). If what you said was true there is no reason for remakes or reboots in your eyes. Meaning no Star Trek, no Transformers (cartoon, comic and movie b4 this current inception) no “Dracula”, Wolfman, etc.

Now if this movie comes out and is almost frame for frame a remake (different then a reboot) of Raimis I will stand behind the “it should never have been done”.

However this (as most movies are) is a work of Art. No two artist will be the same no matter what they try to create.

I agree, Aknot. I don't know why people have a problem with a reboot. Though I think the spidey frnachise didn't need one, i say if the story and plot make sense, do it. Personally, i do think that the studios will make the marvel movies based on some of the ultimates.

Ulik, is pure common sense. The reason why these companies are doing reboots is because they know they messed them up to begin with. All they had to do was follow the comics, but instead they chose to put their own spin on the characters just because they have creative rights to the characters. However, creative rights to a character does not mandate that the character or any part of the his/her origin, and anything else associated with the character has to be changed. The company's just change things here and there just so they can say they changed it. Look at the difference with the hulk movies. Ang lee did a horrible job with the 2003 hulk movie. However, when marvel muscled their way back to owning the character, the 2008 hulk movie far exceeded the 2003 movie (not just in sales, but in plot, content, special effects, etc.). Not surprising, this is because the 2008 movie was solely and entirely based on the comic book and nothing else.

Therefore, to the studios who choose not to stick to the orginal source (and i'm going to use 7th grade language here) DUH!.

Well I'm not trying to say that. Despite Sony painting themselves into a corner, those who are speaking out would rather see a fresher story, read Parker's personal story moves forward, and you get at least one major super villain live action that hasn't been done or at the very least not in awhile.

People also wanted a come back story, namely Raimi's. It could've been interesting how he wrapped up the threads in a final story. We can only get the intent story now.

you can see Sony's blatant obfuscation of where the fault should be laid for the S.M.3 problems too. Raimi's success would have meant top leaders failed the franchise in #3 by saddling him with story elements he didn't want. Now Sony can say critically they saw problems with Raimi's episode 3 and not even injecting the most popular villains into the cast could save it from critic thrash.

Sorry Adam Wests Batman is “the” Batman for a lot of … errrr…..uh…. older people. What you seem to forget is the Comics were almost just like Adam West (and the others) portrayed them… not THAT campy but at times close.

James Bond has proven you can have different actors playing the same role and be successful. Why does a Superhero movie have to be any different?

However it is all he said she said. I want a movie to be done. I dont care if actor A wants crushed cherries every morning at 7:34am, I dont care if the studios paid the director in jelly beans.

I dont need (unless the movie ends on a cliff hanger) the same people telling me a story as long as the next person in line is capable of telling a story.

Im not here to judge who did what to upset who and almost destroy a character I enjoy. I could care less. I want to be entertained. To say a reboot and or new cast/crew cant do that or will “taint” what came before is unwarranted.

A come back story? (Speculation) What if Sam had a bad day? and went totally off his rocker (which is not unheard of)?? What if 1 & 2 Was all he had..? There is nothing in SM1 2 or 3 (except for Connors and Bruce) that makes me want to say hmmm whatever happened to….

As for it never being done? I will say that. If they just “redo” Raimi (which is not a reboot) I will be livid and be back here erasing all my “Reboot was a good idea” cause it wouldnt have been a reboot.

One of my gripes is the studios not aiming these types of movies toward the proper demographic (the adult fans). I think that is another reason for the reboot. Yeah, sure the spidey and the x-men movies made well over 100 million each, but that's only because of their first time appeal on the big screen. However, the studios could have made an extra 100 million if they geared these types of movies toward the adult fans, as the adult fans are the ones that will see a good spidey/x-men flick more than twice. I think they (the studios) are starting to realize this because many fans, as a result of the disaster with many of the superhero flicks that have come out in the last decade (ghost rider, x-men, spiderman, fantastic four), won't be as quick to head to the theater to pay 12 bucks to see a bad superhero movie.

just my opnion, if they rebot with him in hi-school i wil not wach it they should have left the director alone in the first place and should be begging him on ther knees to come back but that said if they do re-boot i would like to see an older spider-man because it feels to much like taking a leap backwards after a coupl steps foward<sory for crappy spelling>

They'll take a young up-and-comer that is relatively unknown or find someone completely unknown I think. If they want to start another franchise from the beginnings and make it authentic in the high school sense, it can't be some mid-twenty-something pop icon.

No, most of your adult fans will not see the movie 2 and 3 times unless they are the built in adult audience. That IMO is where they get their bigger buck. NoI havent but I know people that have seen the same movie 2-3 times in one day…. opening day at that.

Id like to hear if Dylan had any promises made or handshakes of what would happen. Or if he was just happy to be a part of it.

As for JK… Im one that usually is against petitioning for something but my goodness I would donate some of my time for him to be in the reboot. If I had to do charity work, sign petitions, car washes, cookie selling..